Man charged with assault of Malaysian student

A second youth has been charged with the assault and mugging of an injured Malaysian student in an attack during the riots of last month. The shocking attack was videoed and put on the internet which sparked a fundraising campaign for the student.

Ashraf Rossli (Ashraf Haziq), 20, who studies at Kaplan University in Angel Square, Islington, was robbed on August 8th in Barking by two people who had initially appeared to ‘help’ him.

Reece Donovan, 21, of Romford, has already been charged with robbery.

Now a 17-year-old has been charged in connection to the attack and will appear at at Thames Magistrates’ Court on Monday. The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is accused of grievous bodily harm, robbery, burglary and violent disorder.

A portable Sony PlayStation and Nokia mobile phone were taken from Rossli who was left in hospital with a broken jaw.

After the attack, the student said he wanted to stay in Britain and claimed to ‘pity’ is attackers.

In an interview, he said: ‘Britain is great. Before I came here I was very eager and I haven’t got any ill-feelings about what happened.

‘My family are worried about me and my mother would like me to go home. But I am determined to stay. I feel very sorry for the people who did this.

‘It was really sad because among them were children.’

He added that he had been helped by two girls and a woman who lived nearby who saw the incident.